Lucie stared at the screen, mesmerized by the spectacular dance sequence and a bit unnerved at the same time. The film was the sort of fun and frothy romantic comedy she usually loved, but something about it was making her feel uneasy. In the next scene, she realized what it was. Merle and Devendra escape from the wedding banquet while everyone is dancing and climb to the top of one of San Gimignano’s fabled towers. The week of flirting and unbearable tension has led to this explosive moment, as fireworks literally explode in the distance and the young lovers kiss for the first time. Things get more and more heated, as Devendra reaches under Merle’s ball gown, rips off her panties, and pokes his head under her skirt. Suddenly, a drone appears in the night sky and begins to film their furtive lovemaking. Suddenly, there is a loud banging on the door as the prince’s aunt screams from the other side, “Stop it, you two! You’re being filmed!”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake! Mindy to the rescue!” Cecil roared with laughter.
Lucie froze in her seat, not daring to breathe, not daring to look at George. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him in profile, staring expressionless at the screen. She felt her belly tighten into knots as a strange sensation came over her body—some combination of shock, panic, and desire. She took deep breaths, trying to quell the panic. The rest of the movie was a blur to her, and when the lights came up and the audience rose to give the producers a standing ovation, Lucie whispered to Cecil, “I need to go to the ladies’ room.”
As she stood up and made her way out of the row, her eyes caught George’s for a split second. Instead of going to the toilet, Lucie headed down a back hallway to the fire exit that led outside. She needed fresh air. She needed to think. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. How can I face George? I can’t see him, I can’t see him, I can’t see him. Should I just leave? Should I get an Uber right now and go straight home? Should I say something to Cecil? Should I pretend that nothing’s wrong?
The heavy metal door opened behind her, and George stepped out.
Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck.
Lucie glanced at him for a moment and turned away, not saying anything. They were standing in an alley behind the theater, facing an empty back lane and some clipped hedges. George leaned against the wall, silent as usual.
Finally, Lucie summoned up the courage and blurted out, “I had nothing to do with that. I told Olivia nothing!”
“I know,” George said.
“Then how did Olivia know every single detail about that night? Did you tell her? Did you tell your mother?” Lucie demanded
George gave her a look like she was crazy.
“Who else knew?” Lucie asked accusingly.
“I told no one.”
“It must’ve been Charlotte then, that hypocrite! She swore me to secrecy, and look what she ends up doing,” Lucie said angrily.
“We’d better go back inside,” George said as he turned to open the door, but Lucie suddenly grabbed his arm, stopping him.
“Wait.”
“What?” George asked.
Lucie paused for a moment, unsure of what she wanted to say. She could feel the tension between them and the deafening throb in her eardrums as she held his gaze. Don’t don’t don’t don’t don’t. Almost in slow motion, George pushed her against the wall and kissed her.
“Stop!” Lucie cried, pushing him away.
George stepped back, startled. “Sorry, I thought …”
“You thought wrong!” Lucie huffed, as she stepped through the door and slammed it firmly closed.
George stood in the alley, a little dazed. Suddenly the door swung open again and Lucie was pulling him toward her, kissing him deeply, frantically, as his soft lips melded into hers and his tongue sent shock waves through her entire body. Why did his kisses feel like nothing else in the world? Her desire was so insatiable, she felt like she was about to burst into flames, and in a flash it was as if she were back in the candlelit ruins of Villa Jovis, and the stars above were spinning, spinning as she arched her back and surrendered to his touch. She pressed herself against him, feeling his hardness. She shoved her hand down the front of his jeans as a desperate longing overtook her. All she wanted to do right now was pull him into the dark corner behind the hedges, tear off his clothing, and climb up his impossibly godlike body, feeling all of him in her. “Oh God, just fuck me right here!” she heard herself moan. Stop it, a voice in her head suddenly said. Stop it, Charlotte’s voice said. Shame on you, the voice said, as she broke away from his arms and ran down the side alley that led to the front of the cinema.
Cecil and Freddie were standing under the little marquee outside the building, looking around.
“There you are!” Freddie said. “Let’s get ice cream.”
“It got too crowded inside so I went out the other door,” Lucie said, flushed and breathless.
A couple minutes later, George emerged from the front doors of the cinema, drying his hands on a paper towel.
Cecil stared at Lucie and George curiously. “So? Were you both swept up in the romance?”
Lucie could feel her heart pounding out of her chest. Oh my God, he knows. He can see it all over my face.
Cecil rolled his eyes impatiently. “What did you think of your friend’s movie?”
“Oh.” Lucie’s shoulders dropped in relief. “It was okay, I guess. It had its moments.”
“I give it a B minus,” Cecil declared. “Tuscany looked amazing, and the actors were pretty enough, but the costumes were god-awful—whoever the costume designer was should be fired. It’s a wedding with nothing but crazy rich Indians and all the jewelry looked so fake!”
Lucie nodded, giggling nervously, and Cecil continued his rant. “Indians are known for having the most fabulous jewels in the world! What a missed opportunity! But with the dance numbers and the terrible acting, it’s bound to be a camp classic. The plot was too ridiculous for words.”
Freddie nodded in agreement. “The whole drone subplot with the wedding videographers trying to blackmail the couple? That was so ridiculous. But what was even more ridiculous was that sex scene—they’re like two virgins, and when they finally get it on in the tower, the first thing he does is drop to his knees and eat her out? Sorry, that would never happen in real life—dudes always need to get off first. So unbelievable! What did you think, George?”
“Yeah, it was pretty unbelievable,” George said.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Outlook Avenue
East Hampton
I feel the earth move under my feet,
I feel the sky tumbling down, a’tumbling down …
Lucie, Freddie, and Cecil returned to the house to find three ladies with an array of Korean facial masks plastered on their faces, singing and dancing around the living room as Carole King’s Tapestry blasted out on the old McIntosh turntable. Cecil took one look at Charlotte and Marian shimmying on the sofa in bathrobes and wordlessly turned around, heading straight up to Lucie’s bedroom.
“Well, I see you kids are having quite the party without our permission! Mama, isn’t it past your bedtime? And what’s this here?” Freddie said in a mock angry tone, holding up an empty bottle of the 2016 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru.